Tirualem and Hawi

Tirualem and Hawi are two young girls who are students at one of the schools run by our local partner, Hope Enterprises. Ten-year-old Tirualem’s father died when she was two, and her mother struggles to provide for her four children’s basic needs, which includes sending her daughter to school with lunch. Most of the time Tirualem’s friends would share their food with her, however when they weren’t able to come to school she faced the day’s classes with an empty stomach.

Tirualem’s severe hunger clouded her mind and affected her concentration as she struggled to listen to her teachers and complete her work.

Thanks to supporters like you, Tirualem has benefitted from a new school feeding project that was piloted last September in her school. Now she receives a daily lunchtime sandwich, which staves off hunger and enables her to concentrate in the afternoon. Tirualem told us: “The program helps me, and now I do not get hungry. I can also attend my education attentively.” Tirualem’s hunger for education is great. It has helped to keep her in school, and she recently finished her term 5th highest out of her class of 56 students.

Twelve-year-old Hawi is also a beneficiary of Hope Enterprises and shares Tirualem’s commitment to learning. She has been in school since she was five and wants to become a doctor. She lost her father to HIV/AIDS several years ago and both her and her mother are living with the disease, and caring for her ailing grandfather.